Coming off the New England Patriots’ Wild Card win over the Los Angeles Chargers, it was a long week for Christian Gonzalez.
The third-year cornerback played well last week against the Chargers, but he suffered a head injury late in that game that knocked him out of the line-up and put his status for Sunday’s game in question.
It happened on the second play of the fourth quarter of last week’s 16-3 Wild Card win, which was a 2nd-and-7 from the Chargers’ 46-yard line. Gonzalez was matched up against wide receiver Quentin Johnston, with the two battling it out as the ball came in from quarterback Justin Herbert.
Gonzalez had the pass well-covered, and as he tackled Johnston, the receiver landed hard on top of him, leaving the veteran defensive back slow to get up.
As he got to his feet, he appeared to be ailing as teammates came over to check on him. However, Gonzalez waved them off, making it clear he didn’t want to come out of the game.
Unfortunately, two plays later, after the Chargers punted, Gonzalez left the field and didn’t return.
The team later listed him as “Questionable” with a “head” injury. As the page turned, it put his status in doubt heading into this week’s game.
Gonzalez went through the process last week while in concussion protocol, being limited on Wednesday before eventually being a full participant on Thursday and Friday. Reports had him cleared late Friday, which opened the door for his return on Sunday.
He played all but one snap against the Texans, finishing with a team-high 9 tackles along with a pass breakup and a forced fumble during their 28-16 victory to advance to the AFC Championship.
Gonzalez was asked about what this week was like for him, and he went on to say that despite being in the protocol, he prepared the same as he would any other week.
“I mean, sometimes it’s league-mandated,” explained Gonzalez. “You have to get tested and things like that. So that happened, and I was able to pass and clear the test and get out there and practice.”
“Once Tuesday and Wednesday rolled around, I knew I was good to go and just treat it like another week. I mean, game plan, watch my film, do what I do each week. That didn’t really have an effect on my week or anything. I was able to get my reps and do what I do on a normal week.”
Houston’s defense certainly turned out to be formidable, but it was the Patriots’ own defense that stole the show on Sunday. They picked off Texans QB C.J. Stroud four times in the first half, and sacked him three times on Sunday, including one by Khyris Tonga late in the fourth quarter that all but sealed the win with just over four minutes remaining and the Patriots up by two scores.
Gonzalez agreed with Tonga’s comments about liking their group, and he’s confident they can hold their own against anyone.
With a trip to the Super Bowl now at stake, that’s exactly what they’ll need to do next Sunday out in Denver.
“Yeah, for sure,” said Gonzalez when asked if he agreed with his teammate. “We had a plan. We executed, went out there, and we’re able to do what we do. I mean, of course, we like us as a defense, and we’ll go up against anybody. So it was good to get out there and show what we can do.”
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Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.
